At The Bell – The S&P/ASX 200 index is expected to open flat or slightly down today following a subdued finish on Wall Street where the Dow Jones was down 0.9%, the S&P 500 slipped 0.2%, and the Nasdaq eased 0.1%.
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Wall Street closed lower overnight following a rise in oil prices as Iran looked to take further control of the Straits of Homuz.
According to Reuters, a potential deal between Iran and Oman has been proposed to help end the war with the United States by giving Tehran control over ships entering the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz.
Elsewhere, shares in AI leaders Western Digital and Sandisk fell. Sandisk was hit after its forward guidance was slightly below previous analyst estimates.
On a positive local note the ABC has reported that leading economists are forecasting the RBA will leave its key cash rate unchanged after its meeting next Tuesday.
Also locally, the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) says a move by the federal government to deprioritise offshore skilled migration visa applicants will make it harder for mining and other sectors to drive innovation, lift productivity and reinforce the minerals industry’s position as a key contributor to national economic resilience and the global economy.
MCA CEO, Tania Constable, said Australian mining was built on migration during the WA and Victorian gold rushes, and skilled migrants play crucial roles in today’s mining success by filling urgent workforce gaps and supporting long-term growth.
“Although skilled migrants comprise just 1.24% of the Australian minerals workforce, their contribution is critical.
“Employing Australians will always be the first priority of the minerals industry: the industry provides more than 290,000 direct jobs and also creates jobs through supply chains and related industries – totalling around 1.25 million jobs in direct and indirect jobs across the country – with projections indicating up to 35,400 jobs are to be added by 2028.
“Yet without faster access to skilled migrants, labour shortages especially in critical and hard to fill specialised roles would put project timelines, export earnings, and the broader national economy at risk – not just for mining, but in construction, clean energy, defence, advanced manufacturing, AI and cybersecurity.”
Buck and ore
Now – in forex, the Oz dollar is buying US$0.7033
Looking at commodities, all in the greenback,
Iron Ore is up ore was up 1.89% to $96.20
Brent Crude was up 5.16% to $83.550 to USD/Bbl
Gold is selling at $4239.85 per ounce
US natgas futures were down 2.05% to $2.6330 USD/MMBtu
On the market front:
Maritana Minerals (ASX:MRT) is spinning the bit at the Wilsons gold prospect in WA;
Elevra Lithium (ASX:ELV) has completed the sale of certain pegmatite rights in WA;
Resmed Inc (ASX:RMD) has turned in a record fourth quarter
Aurum Resources (ASX:AUE) has hit a bonanza gold section at Boundiali; and
Tivan (ASX:TVM) has agrees to a project finance mandate for Speewah.
That’s HotCopper’s Market Open, I’m Colin Sandell-Hay – happy trading.
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